Exceptional Jedi: The Prologue Story
by WindySilver
Summary: 87 BBY. On an uninhabited valley of Kiros, a mother of a few children of a Veledosian tribe, Lianoros, dies, leaving her daughter's odd yet withheld situation to the Tribe Seer Ni'Dea's hands. Concurrently on Coruscant, Jedi Master Jedova Wang and his Padawan, Degu Odg, leave for Ec Pand on a mission. The prologue of the storyline of Exceptional Jedi series.
1. Chapter 1

_87 BBY, Kiros, Expansion Region_

"Regemo... Please... take care of our children," a woman said weakly in Veledosian.  
"Shada, don't die!" Regemo cried out. He did not want to live without his dear wife whom he had known for as long as he could possibly remember.  
"Regemo, my love... You know that I can't... My time... it has already... come..." Shada said and the light in her eyes disappeared for good as the life left her.  
"Shada..." Regemo whispered. The tears rose to his eyes. Tears that he kept inside. The traditions demanded it.  
"Mom..." said a little girl, who walked from the other side of the room where she had stayed with her brothers and her aunt.  
"Mom is gone now. She... she has been released from her agony," said the girl's big brother, Tureq.

The girl stopped but she did not feel uncontrollable grief. She felt calmness alongside sorrow. She did not shout. She let her head descend instead. She did not need words. The cry of her two-year-old little brother, Gamu, was enough to tell everything.  
"Aunt Ni'Dea... When will the funeral be arranged?" asked the oldest of the girl's brothers, Arak.  
"When everyone has done their sorrow rituals. I'll go to announce the sad news to the tribe. Tell me if you need something," Ni'Dea told and left the room.

She was already waited outside.  
"Seer!" one shouted.  
"Seer Ni'Dea! Is... is Shada...?" asked the closest woman.  
"One with the Force," Ni'Dea announced with a loud voice. The words were difficult to say but she let them sound. She had lost her older sister, but she could not betray the oath she had given her teacher. It was one of the responsibilities of a Tribe Seer.

The silence fell. No one said anything anymore, but slowly some left to the sanctum next to the temple in order to carry out their sorrow ritual. Some stayed, some returned to their chores to wait for the befitting moment. Soon the Seer stood alone in front of the house of her sister's family and wished that she could have done something to help her nearly 300 years old sister who had been sick for long. It all had started soon after she had given birth to Gamu. The vicious circle of diseases had eventually escalated into one serious disease.

Ni'Dea herself was just nearly 250 years old and her teacher, Seer Xa-Dor, had become one with the Force and left his place as the Seer of Lianoros tribe to her just two decades ago.

But then there was Arya, the only daughter of Shada. The girl was now five years old and even though she did not stand out from the other children very much, as the Seer of the tribe of Water Ni'Dea had noticed one clear difference between Arya and the other children: even though Arya, just like everyone else, was purely of the tribe of water from many generations now gone, Arya's birth element was not water but fire. Ni'Dea knew that the time would come when Arya – and everyone else – would notice it. But what would ensue from that, Ni'Dea could not see. She only believed that this was not Arya's place. The girl was supposed to be somewhere else. But where? Where does the girl belong to? What did she have to do? Arya's place was somewhere away from this planet, Ni'Dea knew it. But only that. And it was not enough at all.

The Seer raised her gaze up towards the sky, where countless stars and the two moons shone, and she wished that someone would come and show Arya's path.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	2. Chapter 2

_During the same time, Coruscant, Core Worlds_

Jedova Wang was waiting outside of the Jedi Council Chamber. He knew a few minutes before that a young man would come to the same room yawning. And that is what happened. Degu Odg, his Padawan, came there eventually after he had gotten himself off the sleep couch as he was supposed to.  
"Good morning, Master," Degu greeted, yawning just as expected. Jedova opened his eyes and looked at his Padawan, smiling and very aware of that not only that it was an early morning, but also the young man had been chasing criminals at night once again.  
"Did you sleep well, Degu?" Jedova asked as if in passing.  
"Yeah, veeeeeeeeery well," was the sleepy answer. "It's just that it's so terribly early morning."  
"And perhaps that you chased criminals at the lower levels of Coruscant at night?" Jedova led, sounding absent-minded. This situation had become very familiar to him and every time he somehow managed to get his Padawan talk himself into a trap even though he did try to withhold his nightly trips from the Master.  
"Yes..." Degu answered and as he realized the words his Master had said, he slapped his hand to his mouth. "You... knew about it?"

Jedova gave a laugh and noted, "You know, when an unclean Padawan sneaks back into the Temple in the middle of the night, the chances are quite high that they are noticed, recognized and reported by someone."

The corners of Degu's mouth twitched but he did not have time to answer, when the door of the Council Chamber opened up. The Jedi pair walked in and bowed to the council.  
"Jedova Wang and Degu Odg, a mission for you, we have," begun Master Yoda.  
"The governor of Ec Pand is being persecuted. According to our information, the persecutor is a criminal organization called Hopeakuu. Your mission is to protect the governor until the threat is over," Thame Cerulian told.  
"And when is this threat over?" Degu asked audaciously. Thame Cerulian looked at him stingily.  
"Hopeakuu will withdraw when it deems that the game is lost. We don't know if they keep up until imprisonment, or if they give up before it," noted Reg Tug. "You have the permission to catch them."

Jedova nodded. If Hopeakuu was persistent, it could take a very long time before this mission would be over.  
"May the Force be with you," said Op-Dar. Jedova and Degu bowed and left.  
"So we get to protect the governor from criminals. Great. I hope the police forces on Coruscant fare without me meanwhile," Degu noted to his Master in the corridor, grinning.  
"Remember to keep your feelings under control, Padawan. A Jedi doesn't look for excitement," Jedova said, however knowing that his Padawan was joking. Nevertheless, it did not harm to repeat that sentence to the Padawan.  
"I'm not doing it out of excitement, Master, you know that," Degu said and hesitated for a little moment. "Right?"

Jedova laughed.  
"Of course I know, Degu. After all, we have discussed about this many times," he said and put his hand on his Padawan's shoulder. "Well, you won't get to assist the police forces of Coruscant for a while, but if the Force permits so, you'll be a big help for the police forces of Ec Pand."  
"Or if I manage to sneak away from you at night to catch criminals," Degu noted, grinning widely to his Master in a significant tone.  
"It seems that I have to keep a sharp eye on you," Jedova said seriously, but Degu did not miss the cheerful glint in the eyes of the Jedi Master. That glint had become very familiar to Degu in those four years he had been Jedova's Padawan. And Degu knew that he would still see that glint countless times before he would become a Jedi Knight.

That feeling was not from the Force but from Degu himself. As Jedova had managed to keep tell him many times, he had to trust his instincts. And now his instincts told that the glint would be seen yet many times in Jedova's eyes during those years in which Degu would still be a Padawan.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	3. Chapter 3

_At the night of the next day, Kiros, Expansion Region_

Seer Ni'Dea ended the last verse of her sorrow song and looked at the flower which had grown from her tears. The ancient Veledosian ritual had once again made many memory flowers. After all, Shada Deinden had been a significant Veledosian in the lives of the Lianorosians. The memory flowers created by numerous Lianorosians, both present and gone, glowed in the darkness of the sanctum like stars in the sky. The ground floor of the sanctum seemed like the night sky, but there was one obvious difference to that: everyone walked on this "sky". This sky was the ground.

The silence which followed the echo of the Seer's voice was impenetrable.

One day had passed since Shada's death, and now, when the Seer had been last one to carry out her sorrow ritual, it was time to carry out the funeral. The people of the tribe had already arranged everything and when the Seer walked out of the sanctum, she was waited there.

With a sorrowful mind Ni'Dea walked to the place where her sister's body was. Shada looked more peaceful than she had looked in a long time. After saying the last words to her, Ni'Dea spoke communally to the whole tribe, "Shada Deinden was one of the most important Veledosians of Lianoros whom I have gotten to know during my life. She loved us all and I'm lucky for that I had the honor to be her little sister. Now, when we have said our goodbyes to our friend who was taken away from us way too soon, it is time to let her go to continue her journey as part of the Force. Farewell, Shada, and may your memory be respected even during the upcoming centuries.

 _Everything is forgiven now._ "

When Ni'Dea fell silent, she sensed the huge grief of Regemo. She had known that man through many, many years, but she had never seen him cry. Not before this.

The funeral pyre was ignited and the ashes of Shada started to slowly float away in the air. Ni'Dea looked for Arya with her gaze and saw the girl sitting in fetal position with tears running down her cheeks. No one said anything, but Arya's very subtle, nearly unnoticeable nods were a sign which showed that she heard words. Ni'Dea feared that someone else would notice it and turned her glance back to the ashing body of her sister and whispered silently in her mind, _Oh, elder sister, what did you leave to me?_

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	4. Chapter 4

_On the next day, Ec Pand, Mid Rim_

Jedova and Degu walked out of the transport ship alongside the crowd on Ec Pand's spaceport. They knew where to go. They also had the instructions from the governor to stay inconspicuous through the mission. Degu, to whose strengths staying inconspicuous in public did not belong to at all, would have to stay away from chasing criminals unless Hopeakuu would strike and run. However, just like Jedova had pointed out to him, this mission would be good exercise for patience.

They walked around through random routes like tourists and approached their destination slowly. Then, at some point, Jedova sensed vaguely that someone was following them. And this someone was up to no good.  
"Somebody seems to be following us," Degu murmured very quietly. "Somehow feels like it."  
"We're being followed," Jedova confirmed, looked around and noticed a café. "Hey, why don't we go to visit that café? It looks good."

Degu already knew what his Master was planning but looked at the café for the sake of pretending.  
"Yeah, why not? My legs have slowly started to get sore," he noted. They walked into the café in a casual way and ordered drinks. The woman who worked at the counter shouted the order to the kitchen in a foreign language and the other woman brought two middle-sized steins of the ordered drink and slammed them to the counter, returning to the kitchen after that.

The Jedi twosome took the steins and walked to the table next to the window and sat down. There they would see who was following them.  
"My legs aren't sore at all, but I had gradually become thirsty," Degu mumbled at the table and drank a sip from his stein. "You read my thoughts, Master."

Jedova forced the laugh to stay inside and acquiesced to just smile a little. But when he drank a gulp, that smile was suddenly difficult to maintain.  
"Great choice, this drink I mean," Degu noted when he noticed the very small and unnoticeable tightenings of muscles of his Master's face. The drink they had ordered tasted horrible. Jedova looked at the drink list again and memorized the name of that drink.  
"Vair Shiro. Now that's something I will order never again," he said. Degu chuckled and drank again, forcing his smile to stay on his face; the person who was following them was near already.  
"Believe me, Master, me neither. Unless I haven't thought of pulling a mischief on my apprentice when I'm a Master myself," Degu said, grinning. The grin regressed at the next sip, however.  
"Oh, that poor Padawan," Jedova sighed. "I pity them already." He drank again, wishing that he would soon get to wash this bitterly stale taste away from his mouth with something. Then he looked out of the window as if in passing and now saw the man who was on their trail: a Vurk who had dressed in very vapid clothes. The Vurk looked around himself, set to lean at a corner and smoked. Many passersby looked at him disapprovingly.  
"If we keep up going to the same direction, we can smell him if he keeps up following us. Unless someone gets so upset about smoking so badly that they give him a little beating," Degu noted. Jedova looked at him strictly and send the scolding through the Force; a Jedi was not supposed to wish harm to someone. Degu winced and looked at his Master apologetically, sending a small apology through their bond. Jedova nodded and turned to look at the scenery that opened up from the window before he forced himself to drink again.  
"Good that we didn't order a bigger stein," Degu sighed in relief and emptied his stein. "Well then, now that ordeal is over."

Jedova looked his Padawan, astonished. How had he managed to drink the moderately big stein empty already?  
"Just straight down the throat," Degu answered to the question which had risen to the face of his Master and then shook his head. "Never, ever this thing again..."

Jedova looked at his own stein. There was about one third left yet. And that third was a lot. Degu looked at his Master compassionately.  
"If I managed to get it down my throat, you can do it too," he noted and concealed his grin.

Jedova sighed, closed his eyes and drank the rest of the Vair Shiro as fast as he could. He could sense, how difficult it was for Degu to stay as serious as he normally was, and sent a warning through the Force to him; they would talk about this later.

Degu only grinned visibly when Jedova put his stein to the table, his face expressionless but clearly whitened. He let a short glare to be seen only for so long that Degu would notice it. The boy was only fifteen, Jedova reminded himself, but the Padawan should still at least try to control his amusement.  
"Shall we go, Master?" Degu asked in a conciliatory tone. _Well, one really can't be angry at that boy for very long, can they?_ Jedova caught himself thinking and nodded. "Let's go."

They stood up from the table and a cleaner droid came immediately to snatch the emptied steins to itself. It delivered them to the kitchen. The Jedi continued their travel and the Vurk followed them.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	5. Chapter 5

"That Vurk is starting to get on my nerves", Degu murmured and touched his hidden lightsaber. "Can I go to even say a few chosen words to him?"  
"Calm down, Degu. Patience", Jedova said with a low voice and kept consciously his hand off his own lightsaber. The Vurk had gradually come closer and closer to them, forcing them to play some random tourists, a father and a son, more visibly as the time passed. They couldn't really talk about anything important by any other means than through the Force. While their connection was strong, it had never been like them to do any conversations through it.

The Vurk was now very close. Jedova noticed a newsstand and stayed to look at the newspapers in it, especially those which had not been written in Basic.  
"Can you really read Bith, dad?" Degu asked, keeping the bizarre feeling in his innards inside; it was result from either that Vair Shiro drink or that he felt extremely stupid to call his Master his father, even though he saw Jedova as a father figure. But he did not even known his own, real father. Actually the man had disappeared into the quagmire of criminal leagues quite soon after Degu had been born. That information was sure.

Degu had never told it to Jedova, and he didn't want to ever tell it either, but in truth he chased criminals because he hoped to find out some information about his father that way. The Padawan craved for some information about why his father had left to that path and if he still lived, and if he did, then why. If Degu was proud of any of his skills, he was proud of how well he could withhold that sometimes downright agonizing thirst for information from his Master, who still knew him better than anyone else in the whole Jedi Order.

The Vurk started to walk very slowly past the Jedi and when he was behind them, Degu turned quickly backwards, looking up, and knocked the Vurk over. The Vurk rose up, hissing, and Degu backed off, looking horrified.  
"I'm terribly sorry, sir! I didn't notice you were behind us!" Degu apologized hastily and looked up. "And that bird managed to disappear already..."

The Vurk hissed curses in Semblan and tramped away, looking mortified.  
"You did that on purpose, didn't you, Padawan?" Jedova asked sternly.  
"I'm sorry, Master", Degu apologized now thoroughly sincerely. Jedova's expression eased and he sighed lightly.  
"Well, that Vurk is gone now for a moment. Let's hurry for our destination before he returns", he said. Degu nodded hastily and followed his Master.

Ten minutes later they finally reached the governor's estate.  
"Now you took long", said a man who talked with a nasal voice. The name sign on his suit told his name to be Sairo Tareika.  
"We were followed. It took time to lose him", Jedova told.  
"Well then, in that case the honored governor probably will forgive you for being late. Now follow me and I'll take you to him", Sairo noted and without waiting for an answer he went on. The Jedi followed him.

After many turns and curves they got to governor's apartment.  
"Sir, the Jedi have arrived", Sairo informed to the comlink.  
"I let them in", was the answer. The lock of the door snapped.  
"Now go and don't you even dare to let him wait anymore", Sairo hissed to the Jedi and left. Jedova and Degu walked into the glorious quarters. The governor turned to look at them.  
"Ah, Jedi, you survived here! Come in, come in, there's no use to stand in the doorway like a couple of statues!" the governor said hospitably and motioned to the couch opposite to himself. Degu, who wasn't used to such luxury, forced himself to follow his Master, who stayed calm, and keep an expression as calm as he just could make.  
"All right, let's go through what has to be gone through", the governor noted. The cheerfulness on his face gave way to seriousness and he started to explain the protocols to the Jedi twosome which was now responsible for his safety.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	6. Chapter 6

_A week later_

When Jedova woke up, the first thing he knew was that something was wrong. Degu was already up with his lightsaber in hand, anxious. Jedova got up and took his own lightsaber, and after they had exchanged a nod, they walked out and headed to the governor's apartment, guided there by the Force. It seemed that Hopeakuu had finally decided to make their final move and attack early in the morning.

The Jedi found the guards lying on the ground. They had been knocked out.  
"The governor is in danger," Degu muttered and sprinted forward. Jedova knew that calling the Padawan back would only alert the criminals and went after the young man.

Soon they heard shouting. Degu activated his lightsaber and hit the blasters of the criminals who were dragging the governor away. The warning of the Force reached Jedova but the Jedi Master did not have enough time to warn his Padawan about one of the criminals who jumped from his hiding place and hit the young man with an electro-jabber. Degu let out a cry and one of the criminals shot at his shoulder. The Padawan fell to the ground, whimpering.  
"Degu!" Jedova shouted, activated his lightsaber and rushed to protect his apprentice.

The governor bent over the Padawan, helping him to sit up as Jedova defended them against the criminals who had now gotten some back-up. The Jedi were even more outnumbered now.  
"Are you all right, young man?" the governor asked.  
"I'll survive. Don't worry, governor, we'll protect you," Degu assured and stood up, re-activating his lightsaber and keeping it now in his left hand instead of right, and protected the governor from the blaster fire.

Jedova used the Force as help in defending and breaking the blasters, but Degu was not experienced enough to do it as well as his Master. Time passed and the Jedi noticed that the amount of the criminals started to gradually lessen. Then Degu got another hit and Jedova's attention abated for a short moment.

But even that moment was too much. That moment was all that the thugs of Hopeakuu had waited for and needed. One goon made a sudden lunge and struck an illegally strengthened electro-jabber at full power right at the Jedi Master. Not even then, when he was one with the Force, Jedova could do anything else than let out a cry and succumb into deep darkness, hearing the call of his Padawan. That electricity had been too much for him, just like it would have been to anyone else.

"The Jedi Master has fallen!" the man who had struck Jedova roared and caught the Jedi Master, then threw him on his shoulder.  
"NO! Let him go!" Degu shrieked and strode a step just to notice that everyone else was aiming at the governor.  
"Well, Padawan-pupil, what if we leave with you Master to a small voyage and leave you and the governor alone?" the goon, apparently the boss of the group, suggested.  
"What do you want from my Master?" Degu asked quietly, feeling great anger of which he let go, only to see that there was more anger forming inside. He could not stop it.  
"Oh listen, some bounty hunters pay a real lot for a Jedi Master," the goon told and laughed coldly. "This dude here will fund our stuff for long."

Degu's hand squeezed the hilt of his lightsaber. He wanted to give into his rage and free his Master, but he knew that he would end up to the Dark side of the Force if he did that. He looked around himself and saw many criminals. His mission was to protect the governor. If he attacked their boss, the governor would be killed and the Jedi's mission would have failed. And there was the great risk of getting killed for both Jedi too. Degu did not want to join the Force just yet.  
"Please forgive me, Master," the young Padawan said from the bottom of his heart, knowing that his Master did not hear through the unconsciousness, and deactivated his lightsaber.  
"Wise choice, little one," the goon said, flashed his teeth dotted by caries and turned, taking his accomplices away with himself and Jedova. When the criminals had left the governor's estate, Degu let out the hardest shout of anger he had ever shouted. The frustration was so much to be taken that he had to let part of it out through his mouth.  
"Why... why did you let them save me and take your Master?" the governor asked carefully but also in disbelief.  
"My Master and I were given the mission of protecting you. If I had saved my Master, you would have been killed. I... I have to contact the Council and report about the situation. But first we need guards just in case that Hopeakuu returns to take you with them too," Degu said, numb, and left towards the knocked-out guards who were slowly starting to resuscitate.

When he kneeled next to the second guard Degu suddenly turned to look at the spot where his Master had been stunned.  
"What's wrong?" the governor asked nervously, expecting the Jedi to have felt something through the Force.

Jedova's lightsaber was nowhere to be seen.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	7. Chapter 7

_During the same time, Kiros, Expansion region_

Arya woke up once again to Tureq shaking her.  
"What now?" Arya mumbled.  
"Good morning, Miss drowsy-head," Tureq said calmly. "Aunt Ni'Dea is calling. It's time for your training."

Arya got up from her bed and after a short while she scuttled to the temple already. Seer Ni'Dea was waiting for her there.  
"Good morning, Seer!" Arya greeted formally. She did not know why she was so formal; it just had always been her style.  
"Good morning, young Arya. Are you ready for today's training?" Ni'Dea asked. Arya nodded, excited.  
"All right then. Let's continue from where we left yesterday," the Seer told calmly and gestured towards a bowl of water. "Remember that at this point you just ask. Asking is the first step for control."

Arya nodded again and concentrated on remembering the words she had learned yesterday: the words of the language of water with which one asked water to float in the air.  
"Reach to your core and find your connection to the water," Ni'Dea steered. Arya reached, only feeling some kind of burning which was very, very distantly cooled by water.

Suddenly, as if controlled by someone else, she raised her hand and spoke the words with a powerful certainty. Water rose to float as an answer to that request.  
"Hmm, very good, Arya, very good. It seems that good night's sleep helped," Ni'Dea said. She had doubted the girl's capability to continue training this soon after the death of her mother, but at the same time she knew that everyone got over their loss the best if they returned to their routine.  
"Can I try the next step already?" Arya asked, enthusiastic. One of the girl's vices was to try to continue forward too early.  
"The next step _is_ control. Don't get cocky after one success; you have to repeat the exercise," Ni'Dea said quite sternly. Staying strict seemed to be the only way to restrain the girl's zest. If even that was enough, that is.  
"Okay," Arya said without becoming discouraged. "But if I do well, can I at least try?"  
"Well, sure," Ni'Dea consented. Arya smiled widely and spoke her request, once again full of enthusiasm.

However, some time later Seer Ni'Dea came to the conclusion that Arya was not advanced enough to try control. After all, it was usually taught when the child was about ten years old, and it was just the beginning of the long path to complete skills. When the Seer was sought to help on a sudden illness, Arya was left alone in the room.

Arya did not know the words but she still somehow knew them. When she was alone, she sat down and reached to her core, feeling once again the burn and the distant cooling of water. She raised both of her hands and spoke a simple word, the simplest of orders, in the language of water, "Plika!" _Arise!_

Arya opened her eyes when she felt a weird surge of energy go through herself and gasped as she saw that she kept water in the air. She started to move that water around the room, heart full of joy. She had done it! She controlled water!

In the end Arya concentrated on just some sort of meditation as she kept the water in the air. The burn did not feel so strong anymore, just cozily warm. Arya felt like she was sinking and drifting in some kind of a tide, which seemed to go through the whole galaxy, and soon a vision rose to her mind:

 _A man with auburn hair which reached to the neck woke up in a cold and dark place. He seemed like he had gotten a hard hit, but he recovered quickly and started to look around himself. He checked his belt and found something he had wished to find there. But there was something else he did not find. He sat down, closed his eyes and concentrated. Soon, however, he opened his eyes, lifted his gaze, desperate, and spoke only one word, "Degu."_

The door opened and the man looked into its direction. He saw something Arya did not see.  
"Where is my apprentice?" the man asked, his bass voice strong.  
"On Ec Pand with the governor," was the answer with a gruff male voice.  
"Where am I then?" the man asked.  
"You don't need to know that," was the answer. The answerer threw a moldy-looking piece of bread to the man and left, banging the door shut. The man picked the piece of bread up but found that it had grown moldy to the point of being perilous.  
"Degu... Please try to fare without me for a little while," the man said with longing.

Seer Ni'Dea's voice reached Arya's consciousness, shouting, "Arya, what are you doing?!"

Arya startled and lost all her concentration. The water fell to her lap, soaking her clothes.  
"Did you... did you control water?" the Seer asked.  
"Yes. And I... I think I saw a vision, too," Arya answered and told about the vision she had just seen.  
"Interesting. I have never heard of anyone seeing visions when practicing control," Ni'Dea said.  
"Do you know what it could mean?" Arya asked.

The Seer looked at her contemplatively.  
"No. I sure don't know," Ni'Dea said, withholding the possibility she wished to be the right reason for that vision: that Arya truly had her own path which went somewhere else. Seer Ni'Dea verily wished that the man, whom Arya had seen in her vision, was the person who could lead Arya to the right path. And that the man would arrive there before it would be too late...

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	8. Chapter 8

_A couple of days later, Bright Jewel sector_

Jedova meditated in the cell he was in. He wished that the next food ration his captors would bring to him would not be deadly moldy and thus inedible. He had not eaten anything for a few days and he knew more than well that it had weakened him a lot. He still tried to endure with the help of the Force until he would find out how to escape as safely as possible in this extremely hostile and perilous environment which was teeming with lowly criminals. When the plan and the opportunity would present themselves, Jedova Wang would make his escape.

The door opened up with a bang. Jedova opened his eyes and felt his innards squirm as he saw a piece of bread even more moldy. _How can anything be moldier than yesterday's bread?_ the Jedi Master wondered desperately. Being hungry for long had gradually made his thoughts quite unpleasant. Rational thinking felt more difficult an hour after hour.  
"Here's your dinner, honored Jedi Master," said the criminal who threw the bread, supposedly formally bowing to him. Jedova nodded to that criminal who left without saying anything else.

Jedova hid the bread among the other pieces behind a secret hatch. The smell of mold had already become very stingy and Jedova did not hesitate shutting the hatch. He felt impatience rising inside himself once again and took his lightsaber to his hand. He had to get out of that cell. He wondered if it was due to a temporary claustrophobia or something else. He concluded that it did not matter. The only thing that mattered now was escaping and finding Degu.

He could not stand it anymore.

His patience had come to an end.

Jedova closed his eyes and took a deep breath, concentrating for a moment, concentrating _to_ the moment. Then he opened his eyes, ignited his lightsaber and cut the door open with ease. The guard at the door jumped and triggered the alarm, then took his blaster. Jedova threw that weapon away with the Force and ran along the corridor for the hangar, navigation depending on the Force and his own senses. The alarm echoed in the narrow corridors.

A flood of humans came from the cross of the corridors.  
"There that Jedi is!" one shouted.  
"Where did he get a lightsaber?" another one shrieked.  
"Whatever, Kroq gave the order to capture the rogue Jedi!" someone yelled.  
"Attack!" shouted the man in the frontline.  
"Remember, catch him alive!" reminded the person next to him.

Jedova counted that about twenty humans had crowded to the corridor. He sought for a stronger connection to the Force through the frenzy that had released itself in his body, feeling like that frenzy which kept his feet on the move had taken his very essence to its tide, and ran towards that group of criminal which charged as a raid against him. Jedova collected all the strength he had left and, winged by the Force, he jumped over the heads of the criminals, coming down to his hands and using his momentum to keep going, making a somersault to get back to his feet. The Force pulsing in, through and around him, the Jedi Master dashed forward with long steps like a whirlwind, leaving behind the criminals who were now gasping in rage and astonishment.

Soon he found the hangar. That was when he had to stop and give up the wild power which had felt so good, powering him as if he had been a young boy. As Jedova took his concentration back to himself, for a moment he feared that the Dark side had taken over him. Luckily, he felt only the Light, the usual, certain, bright power he had always channeled. The Dark stayed away. Dark was part of every being, but it stayed away from controlling Jedova, for the Light was in control of the human man. He had been free, the whirlwind among the storm made by the Living Force, feeling _young_ and so _alive_ again, but now it was time to return to the harsh reality.

The hangar's door was guarded by two Toydarians. Jedova bit his lip. Mind tricks did not work on Toydarians. The Jedi Master calmed his mind and let the Living Force tell him what was ahead. There were only two pilots unskilled in combat who had been forced to work for Hopeakuu and two Whiphids who guarded them in the hangar. No one else.

That was it. Jedova jumped out from his hiding place, knocked out the guards with quick punches and opened the door up with his lightsaber.  
"What the..." one of the Whiphid guards started. The other one had already taken his lightwhip and tried to hit the Jedi Master with it before the human could get too close. The whip entwined around Jedova's lightsaber's purple-glowing blade and the other Whiphid guard shot at the Jedi Master. Despite of the pain, Jedova held onto his lightsaber and noticed vaguely how the pilots jumped to fight the other guard, making him drop his weapon from his hand. The guard keeping the lightwhip looked at his fellow and Jedova tugged his lightsaber towards himself, making the Whiphid fall over.

The pilots took one of the ships and Jedova took the other one.  
"Thank you, Master Jedi," the pilots thanked the Jedi.  
"I only did what a Jedi must do: help those in need. Go on and be careful. May the Force be with you," Jedova said and climbed to his ship, turned it on and left out behind the pilots.

The warning of the Force came just in time for Jedova to turn his ship away just enough to lose only one engine. The two pilots were not so lucky; their ship blew up into pieces. Jedova winced when he felt the death of those two young and hopeful pilots in the Force.

He could not do anything else than turn his gaze forward and go on ahead, saying the solemn goodbyes to those two pilots whose names he would never find out.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	9. Chapter 9

Jedova navigated onward, knowing his strength was vanishing. The Force was strong in him, but it was not _that_ strong. He had to land somewhere. When he noticed that Hopeakuu was sending starfighters after him, he added more power to the engine and started to zigzag amongst the gunfire as well as he could with just one engine and gradually weakening concentration. He saw the comm. units but they were too far away for him to be able to use them. The autopilot function was utterly useless. He had to fare all alone...

Suddenly fighters of Hopeakuu appeared in front of him and the Jedi Master raised his ship up, avoiding the collision narrowly. The ship sped forth and Jedova could not do anything else than wish that he could somehow get somewhere where he could contact the Jedi Temple or even Degu... Or anyone who could help him in the first place.

After travelling for some time with the starfighters seemingly appearing every single time he got out of the hyperspace, Jedova's route met a planet on which Jedova could land on. Suddenly a starfighter arrived from the hyperspace again and shot at the Jedi's ship and left immediately after informing their boss about the incident. _"The Jedi Master wouldn't survive."_

Jedova realized very late that he was going to make an emergency landing which would be fatal if he stayed in the cockpit. Accepting his possible death, he went to the back of the ship and prepared himself for his fate, whatever it would be. Maybe this time he would actually join the Force. Maybe this was the last one of his misfortunes, the final act of his life, the act in which everything ended for him, but the story would continue – without him.

The hit on the ship and the explosion after it lighted the sky. The people of Lianoros pointed at the falling ship.  
"Let's go to see, what will happen," Seer Ni'Dea said. Arya felt something elusive. Something elusive which made her ask, "Can I come with you?"  
"Too dangerous, Arya," she was answered to.  
"I'll stay away from the fire and out of the way!" Arya assured.  
"Well come then," said Arak, the oldest of his brothers. "But stay safe, do you hear me?"

Arya, alongside her brother, climbed on a Breko, a Veledosian species their folk had used as mounts for long as they had been able to tame them. The group of Lianorosians, the Tribe Seer in front, headed to the place Ni'Dea had seen to be the crash site.

The flaming ship crashed on the ground and burst into two from the middle.  
"Hurry up!" the Seer shouted and started to voice the words to call the rain with a few other Lianorosians. Arya looked at the burning ship, horrified, seeing rainclouds accumulating over the ship. The group stopped and dismounted at a suitable distance and they continued on foot. Arya stayed at the back with Arak.

Everyone else than her started to use the rain water to extinguish the fire. Arya stayed still and heard once again words she had heard at her mother's cremation. Those words were hissing, completely different from the language of water. And yet she could understand those words, perfectly even! As perfectly as the language of water, at the very least.

This time the words were saying, _Save the human! He's burning! It's not his time! He is not supposed to burn alive! It's not his fate!  
Where is he?_ Arya asked in that same language, not knowing the words, yet whispering them out.  
 _The side nearer to you, the rear. Girl, save him!_ came the answer.

Arya looked where the voice had told to but saw no one there. She ran closer, then saw a human man who had barely crawled out of the ship. The human moaned as the flames burned him alive slowly. Arya raised her hand and started to repeat the same words, "Shi, shuka rho." _Fire, leave him._

Fire retreated from around the man quite quickly and the man lifted his head, seeing Arya. He saw amber-colored eyes with streak pupil behind the green eyes of the girl. He fixed his gaze to those eyes and when Arya stopped, the amber and streak pupil disappeared so that they could not be told apart from the green eyes. Arya looked at him, kneeling next to him and asked in Basic she had been taught, "Did you get hurt badly?"  
"Quite badly," the man answered with a weak voice.  
"Was there someone else in the ship?" Arya asked.  
"No... Just... me..." the man answered and sank nearer to the border on unconsciousness. Arya realized this, turned towards her fellow tribespeople and shouted in Veledosian, "Hey! Somebody come here and help, here's a human who survived out of the ship! He needs help!"

Arya's shout reached the ears of the Lianorosians, and the Seer ran with the others there, leaving some Veledosians to extinguish fire.  
"He told that there's no one else in the ship. But he has gotten serious burns, he needs help!" Arya explained.  
"Did he tell his name?" Seer asked.  
"No," Arya answered.  
"All right. Guroko and Opaku, you bring the man to our village so that I can tend to his injuries. Arya, with me. The rest of you, put down the fire and make sure it stays down," Seer instructed.  
"Roger that!" Guroko and Opaku said and they lifted carefully the now unconscious man on the back of a Breko and they left with the Seer and Arya back to the village.  
 _Go, save. Let him continue his life. His time is yet to come!_ said that same voice, now asphyxiated.

Arya looked behind once more, seeing how fire died down slowly. Only one possibility came to her mind: Did she have a connection to fire?

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	10. Chapter 10

Many Lianorosians exclaimed as they saw the returning group.  
"Did you bring an outsider here?" one shrieked.  
"He was injured in the crash-landing of his ship. He must be helped," the Seer said.  
"But still, an outsider!" said another Lianorosian.  
"An injured outsider! Do you think that I don't know what I am doing when I bring an injured human here to be tended?" the Seer shouted. The crosstalk ended as if it had met a wall and the group went to the temple without hearing any more protests. The authority of a Seer was never to be defied, as their decision was final. It was taboo which was discreetly or just unwittingly offended from time to time. But it was never talked about. That was an unwritten rule.

After they got to the temple, Seer Ni'Dea dismissed others and started to tend the burns of the man.  
"I wonder who that man is," Opaku wondered and looked at his younger brother.  
"Well how should I know?" Guroko snapped. "Arya, do you have any idea who that man could be?"  
"No," Arya answered, sat down to the ground and started to think. At least in her eyes that man looked very much like the man in her vision. She was not sure at all about it, but she believed it would become clear soon.

Commotion was heard from outside. The information about the outsider brought to the village spread like wildfire. Arya, Guroko and Opaku waited outside of the room, barely hearing the quiet words of the Seer. Arya wished that she would one day know the words of the language of water as well as the Seer.

After some time had passed, the Seer came out of the temple and told, "I have just about healed the burns. The man will recover eventually. I will monitor him until he wakes up. After we know who he is, I will decide on what we shall do about him. Does anyone have objections?"

Everyone shook their heads and left, talking quietly with each other.  
"Can I stay, too?" Arya asked.  
"Are you sure about staying?" the Seer asked. Arya nodded.  
"All right. Stay then," the Seer granted.

The sun of Kiros descended and the two moons rose. The Lianorosians who had been left to extinguish fire returned and reported to Ni'Dea. Arya told to the Seer how she had ended up to find the only passenger of the ship from where no one had yet looked for in the first place. Ni'Dea nodded but did not say anything. She felt confusion and was worried; it was clear that Arya was not able to control only water but also fire. The Seer couldn't do anything else than wonder, _What Arya, blood purely of the tribe of water, actually was? How could she do this?_

The night changed to morning once again. The sun rose slowly. The man saved from fire regained consciousness.  
"Where am I?" he asked cumbersomely. Seer Ni'Dea switched the language she talked to Basic she had learned years ago, but never used before, and answered, "You are with my tribe. Don't be afraid, we don't wish to do any harm."  
"What happened to me?" the man asked. "I only remember... the ship... fell to ground... I got out of there... fire burned all the time... And then... a woman appeared... she... she somehow drove fire away... I guess I talked with her but then... nothing..."

Seer Ni'Dea looked at Arya, surprised. Arya shrugged, believing that the man had been too pained to notice that he had been saved by a five-year-old girl.  
"My niece, Arya, saved you from being burned alive. I brought you to our village so that I could tend to your burns," Seer told. The man looked at the two Veledosians and noticed that Arya did look familiar, as if he had once seen her by chance. He did not say anything, though.  
"Who are you?" the Seer asked.  
"My name is Jedova Wang," the man answered. "Do... do you have a comlink or something I could use to contact my apprentice? He must be worried sick."  
"We don't have any communications equipment. The nearest place which has is two days' riding away," the Seer answered. Jedova groaned and tried to sit up.  
"You shouldn't get up. You aren't near enough from being recovered from your injuries," Ni'Dea said strictly but also understandingly. She understood that the man was worried about his apprentice.  
"I must know if he's all right. And I know he's worried. He definitely is. He must know that I'm even alive," Jedova said heavily. He knew that Degu could sense him being alive through the Force, but he wanted to tell it to him with his own voice. It belonged to his own habits.  
"You can't leave in that state. Riding through valleys is too hard in that state. You wouldn't make it," Arya said abruptly. Jedova looked at her, astounded by the fact that a little girl just had contradicted him.  
"Arya is right. Going through the valleys in that shape is out of the question," Seer noted.

Immediately after that the door was knocked and opened by Regemo.  
"Seer! Gamu has gotten ill. I don't know what's wrong! It seems to be something serious!" he said. Ni'Dea paled.  
"I'll be right there," he said in Veledosian and then told Jedova in Basic, "I have to go. An illness case."

Right after saying it she ran after Regemo. Arya was too shocked to do anything. She had seen Ni'Dea's face. _Will Gamu die just like mom?_ Arya feared.  
"You are Arya, right?" Jedova asked the girl who turned and nodded as an answer. Arya had come to the conclusion that the man was most likely the man she had seen in her vision.  
"Do you happen to be the one who saved me from fire?" Jedova asked, keeping his voice and expression neutral. He did not want to believe that a little girl had saved his life.  
"Yes. I think," Arya answered and pondered her words for a small moment. "You... you are a Jedi Master, aren't you?"

Jedova could not help startling. The question had come suddenly and oddly calmly.  
"How did you figure that out?" he asked. Arya shrugged.  
"I really don't know. I just sensed it or something," she answered.  
"Then you sensed right. I am a Jedi Master, indeed," Jedova told serenely. Arya's eyes got brighter and she could not keep herself from asking, "What does belong to the job of a Jedi?"  
"You don't know?" Jedova asked, now confused.  
"No. Now when I think about it more acutely, I don't even know what a Jedi is," Arya said, confused too. "I just somehow know things I don't know. About some things I know more, about others I know less, if anything at all."  
"Very peculiar," Jedova noted, wondering if the girl had a strong connection to the Force without knowing it. "The Jedi are the protectors of the peace and justice in the galaxy. We travel around the galaxy, accomplish missions given by the Jedi High Council, learn to use the Force and so on. Do you happen to know what the Force is?"

Jedova expected that Arya would not know but something else came from the girl's mouth, "Of course! It's part of the basic knowledge of Veledosians! The Force surrounds everything living and keeps the galaxy together. No one doesn't even know when my kind started to use the Force, but quite a long time has passed since it. I do think that it was somewhen during the time of Je'daii Order. But I have never heard of such an Order and still I knew to mention it."

The amazed expression of the girl brought a young Jedi Initiate, who had managed to accidentally deflect a laser shot by a remote, to Jedova's mind. He could not help but smile.  
"You sure do know things you don't know," he noted.

Arya scratched her neck, puzzled, but decided to disregard it and started to ask more about Jedova's Jedi career. Jedova was glad to tell incidents which had happened during the course of many years. The girl's nearly boundless interest was fully indivisible, and Jedova could not help enjoying that he could teach different things to the young girl in passing. The girl absorbed everything like a sponge.

Some time later the Seer returned, very pale.  
"Seer... how is Gamu?" Arya asked immediately. Her attention fully fixed to the Seer very fast.  
"Steppe fever. The second case during the last couple of days already. It may begin to spread if more cases come out. I sure wish that it won't escalate to a similar epidemic like back when I was a disciple," Seer answered.  
"I haven't heard about Steppe fever occurring anywhere in centuries. I thought it had completely disappeared already," Jedova said.  
"The last epidemic here in the village of the tribe was almost 150 years ago. Back then I was learning healing skills," Seer told. "Very nice hands-on practice. But both parents of my elder sister and mine died. We couldn't save them from the disease."  
"Excuse me? 150 years ago?" Jedova asked in surprise and looked more sharply at the Seer, whom he had thought to be near his age. "I... didn't realize you were that old..."

Seer Ni'Dea gave a laugh at the bemused man.  
"Yes. But now you are in the middle of a village of Veledosians. And our kind lives over the age of 400 years, excluding untimely deaths," she explained.  
"Veldosians? I'm not sure if I have ever heard," Jedova said.  
"Well of course not. If you didn't live 400 years ago, you probably don't even know about the home planet of my folk, Veledos. It got poisoned due to a war back then and the tribes left to their own ways to other parts of the galaxy," Seer told. "Nowadays no one doesn't really know anything else about these tribes than the heritage which has survived to these times."  
"Veledos... Wait, I believe that I've heard of that planet one day... Oh yes, back during the history lessons of Jedi Master Kuro, when I was just an Initiate! Master Kuro told about the war which lead to _The Poisoning of Veledos_. Outsiders came there to wage war, killed many civilians simultaneously and poisoned the whole planet. It took countless of casualties," Jedova remembered.  
"Are you a Jedi?" Ni'Dea asked, astonished.  
"Yes," Jedova answered. Ni'Dea looked unwittingly to Arya, who was already aware of this fact and thus not surprised at all.  
"I see... Then at least I know that I or anyone else has no reason to worry," Seer said, sighing in relief in her mind. Suddenly she thought she now knew on which path Arya was meant to be.

Arya was meant to be a Jedi!

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	11. Chapter 11

_19 standard hours later, Coruscant, Core Worlds_

"Padawan Odg, report about the mission", Thame Cerulian's voice was strict when she talked to the depressed and exhausted Padawan who should have been there with his Master, being his own positive self.  
"My Master Jedova Wang and I arrived two weeks ago to Ec Pand in schedule and the governor met us after we had arrived to his estate. During the first week he wasn't attacked in a wide scale but then, in an early morning, Hopeakuu came with great forces to kidnap him. The guards had been knocked out as my Master and I reached them and we saw, how the governor was being dragged away. We went to help him. I was struck down and my Master protected both me and the governor for a moment. At that time Hopeakuu's back-up forces came and we got surrounded. In numbers we were greatly disadvantaged. Even though I could protect the governor with my Master, one of the criminals managed to knock out my Master with electro-jabber and catch him. The rest of them started to aim at the governor and I had to choose between the governor's life and saving my Master. And I... I chose the governor's life. Our mission was to protect him and I... I strongly felt that my Master would survive on his own. But there has been nothing I've heard about him. Hopeakuu left the governor alone after this and I got the order to return here as the situation had calmed down on Ec Pand," Degu reported, trying to keep his voice even. He did not succeed. For a few days, he alone had been responsible for the governor's safety, and as Hopeakuu's people had been nearby, yet unarmed, laughing at the Padawan's distress, his mental stamina had come its extremity without any information about the situation of Jedova.  
"A difficult decision you made, and yet doubt you do, if the right choice it was," Yaddle said.  
"Yes, I... I thought that my Master could at least manage to contact someone but... nothing has been heard from him, so I'm not sure anymore if I did the right thing," Degu admitted.  
"Do you sense that he's alive?" Reg Tug asked.  
"Yes. But I can't contact him through the Force. It just... doesn't succeed. But he is alive, I know it for sure," Degu said.  
"Then the right thing you did, because spared the life of the governor was. Find Jedova Wang we will, and meanwhile take care of himself he does. An experienced Jedi Master he is, not a youngling," Yoda said. "To rest go now, your mind with meditation calm. Maybe find your Master you do, when serene your mind is. Dismissed, you are."

Degu bowed and walked out of the Chamber, keeping his back straight, but when he got out of there and the door had shut behind him, his posture broke down and he scuffled to his quarters, sinking to a deep dream after he had gotten down to hit sleep couch. _Oh Master, where are you?_ he thought.

 _During the same time on Kiros_

"So, Arya is strong in the Force. She could possibly become a Jedi, but usually children, who are older than one year, are not taken to become Initiates," Jedova said.  
"Her place is not here, I'm sure of it. Does she not have even the slightest of chance to become a Jedi Initiate?" Ni'Dea asked.  
"I suppose she has. About a year ago a four-year-old Cerean was taken as an Initiate and he caught his peers quickly. If Arya is at least as quick to learn, her chances are good," Jedova told. "But even if her place wasn't here, why are you telling me this? Do you believe that she is fated to be a Jedi?"  
"That's the only path I see to be possible to her. Especially since she's even too interested about the Jedi path. Listen, this is the tribe of water, but Arya has the ability to use the fire element alongside the water element, she proved that when she saved you. Actually, I think that even though her blood is of tribe of water as purely as possible, her birth element is still fire," Ni'Dea said. "It shouldn't be possible, but it is. And if she stays here, isolated from rest of the galaxy, her abilities will be wasted. I haven't talked with Regemo about this yet, because I wanted your opinion about Arya's chances."  
"As far as I know, there is no one in the Order who could teach using the Veledosian elements," Jedova said grimly. "I don't know how that was handled before _The Poisoning of Veledos_."  
"Seer Xa-Dor once told me, that during the former eras, back when some Veledosian children were given to Jedi training, those who became Padawans visited their tribe at some point on agreed times to be taught on using their element. It was an ancient tradition, strayed from only when the Master was someone who knew how to use that element," Seer reminisced. The situation was complicated, and she did not want to go through any more headaches, but this could be the only chance to ever get Arya to proper training.

Jedova considered carefully.  
"I can't promise anything but I can at least try. If Arya is not accepted as an Initiate, I can bring her back," he said.  
"I understand. But for the time being you are the only Jedi who knows the way here. When the time comes for Arya to be taught using the water element, her Master must know the way here. But I'd like to keep the location of our village generally as a secret. We have lived in isolation for so long, and most of the tribe is not ready to meet the rest of the world," Seer Ni'Dea said.  
"I see. I will keep the location as a secret from as many as possible," Jedova promised.  
"And yet one thing. If Arya's birth element is fire, as I fear, she may become very unpredictable. I've heard a lot about normal Veledosians of fire having problems especially on controlling their feelings. It may turn out as a problem at least when she is a Padawan," Ni'Dea told and continued under her breath, "If she ever becomes a Padawan..."

Jedova nodded. Even though he knew that some Padawans did have problems with their feelings especially at the beginning of their training, he believed based on the Tribe Seer's words that for any Veledosian of fire the feelings would be the most difficult thing.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	12. Chapter 12

_About a standard hour later_

"So, you're leaving, Master Wang?" Arya asked.  
"Yes. I have recovered enough to be able to travel to the city," Jedova explained. Arya nodded, smothering her chagrin this time. She would have wanted to hear more about Jedi and the rest of the galaxy.  
"Why don't you spend the last night here before you leave? Regemo told that you could come for a dinner with me to Arya's family's place," Seer Ni'Dea said.  
"Really?" Jedova asked. He had stayed quite far away from other Veledosians than Arya and the Seer, who had voluntarily spent time with him. "What about the Steppe fever epidemic?"  
"Three have gotten ill. Alinja takes care of them," Seer told.  
"Come on, Master Wang! Just this time!" Arya begged.  
"Well... All right. Just this time," Jedova gave in. This could be the last time he would be in the village of Lianoros tribe.

The door was knocked by someone.  
"Arizana! Are you coming?" shouted the voice behind the door.  
"Coming, Miriel!" Arya shouted back and nodded to Jedova before leaving. "See you later!"  
"She's so full of energy," Seer Ni'Dea said quietly to herself.  
"Have you spoken with Arya's father?" Jedova asked.  
"I have. Regemo said that he will think about it. That's why I asked you to come for dinner with us. He is going to tell then, whether he'll let Arya go or not," Ni'Dea answered.  
"What about Arya? Are you sure that she wants to leave?" Jedova asked.  
"She doesn't talk about something like that to me or the rest of her family, but I have heard what she has been saying to her friends," Ni'Dea told with a small smile on her lips. "I don't know about that Cerean you mentioned, but at least Arya will be glad to go to the Jedi path if it just is possible."

Jedova nodded as they stepped out of the temple of the Lianoros tribe's village. He had stayed still for the previous day and recollected his strength. He could not have been gladder to get back on his feet this soon. Many Lianorosians jumped as they saw the Jedi Master; even though the firm respect towards Jedi had somehow stayed amongst them all these years of isolation, many of them were afraid of this Jedi Master who had straight posture.  
"Hey, be careful, will you?" came a girl's shout.  
"Calm down, nothing's wrong!" said a boy's voice.  
"But Arizana has wounds already! Stop now!" the same girl shouted.  
"I'm fine! Hey Dar, look out, 'cause here I come!" Arya's voice shouted back.

Jedova and Ni'Dea looked at the direction of the hullabaloo, one understanding the shouting, the other not understanding a single word of it. Arya, with a grin on her face, was wrestling with one of her peers. Ni'Dea sighed and shook her head, amused.  
"Where the other girls stay away from the boys' fuss, Arya doesn't mind the harsh going. She sure has become like her eldest brother, Arak. Although Arak was even worse in her age," Ni'Dea noted, keeping her smile. "Many times Shada noted that sometimes she thinks that all of her children are boys."  
"What do you mean by that?" Jedova asked.  
"Just look at the shape Arya has already gotten herself to! She didn't leave with Miriel that long ago, did she?" Ni'Dea laughed, gesturing towards the girl who had already gotten herself quite dusty. Arya seemed to have even two wounds too, but she did not let them hinder her.  
"It's difficult to believe that Tureq is the brother of hers and Arak's," Ni'Dea shook her head. "Well at least one of those fools is a calm one. I wonder what Gamu will become then."

Jedova did not say anything. He did not know family life since he had been taken to Jedi training soon after he was born, or so he had been told once he had been old enough to understand; his mother had given him over to Coruscanti medics who had, by the information of his Force sensitivity written in his medical records, given him to the Jedi Order after this his mother had just disappeared. Everyone believed she had died and Jedova had no reason to think otherwise. He did not know his parents, family or what such an ordinary life would have been, and that was it. It could never be changed.

Jedova knew that Arya would lose all this if she left and he did not want to tear the girl away from her own life. The world outside of this small Lianorosian village was massive and completely different from this idyllic place to which many generations of Veledosians had already been born during these few centuries. The Force was very strong yet young in its strength in this village and its inhabitants. The village had not been there for that long...  
"Hello there," said a low male voice next to Ni'Dea. The speech had a peculiar accent and the words were spoken slowly, as if saying them was difficult. Both Ni'Dea and Jedova turned to look at the talker. This was a quite tired-looking man seemingly older than Ni'Dea. His longish, maroon hair looked poorly cared for.  
"Regemo," Ni'Dea greeted her brother-in-law with a nod. Regemo looked at Jedova steadily but at the same time carefully; he was not used to talking to someone who was taller than him, even though Arak had grown taller than him. But Jedova was a person completely unknown to him. An outsider. Jedova greeted the Veledosian man with a neutral nod.  
"Nice to meet you, Jedi Master," Regemo said with the same slow pace; he had never during his nearly 300 years used Basic since those days when now late Seer Xa-Dor had taught it to him back when he had been a mere child.  
"Nice to meet you, Regemo," Jedova answered calmly. Regemo turned to look at Ni'Dea.  
"Have you already decided?" Ni'Dea asked. Regemo nodded.  
"If Arya wants to leave with you, she may go," he told, looking at Jedova.  
"I thought that you weren't supposed to tell it before the evening," Ni'Dea noted.  
"I already thought enough. There will involuntarily come the time when we face the outside world, so why push farther to the future that moment when we accept it now?" Regemo said, turned to Ni'Dea and muttered in Veledosian, "Besides, Tureq has been talking about going to the outside world after he has grown up and I really wouldn't like to let him go there without anyone he knows being there."  
"I see," Ni'Dea said in Basic as Regemo straightened back to the slightly bent posture typical to the Veledosians.  
"Arya! Cheere me hengrako! Plaaru!" _Arya! Get here right now! Drat!_ came a shout.  
"Palako korako, Arak!" _Coming, Arak!_ Arya shouted back.  
"Mirichi tikira puraku noicha? Amichio lira!" _Didn't I tell you to not get yourself dirty? I can't believe this!_ the same shouter answered.  
"Plerenne hakiko: etse merip kooren." _One reason: She's impossible,_ Regemo noted. Ni'Dea shot a strict look at him without Jedova noticing it.  
At the same time few Veledosians ventured eventually to talk with the Jedi Master. Many asked about the outside world and Jedova did his best to explain neutrally and truthfully about the world outside of the village of Lianoros to the people who understood Basic more or less.  
"Regemo's example seems to have given some others will to gather their courage and come to have a chat," Ni'Dea noted to Jedova, smiling.  
"Paaren! Amichia lira!" _Dad! You won't believe this!_ came a shout.  
"Arak lost his temper. Got to go," Regemo noted and left with quite swift steps to the direction the shout had come from.  
"Can't Tureq help him?" Ni'Dea shouted after him. Regemo swung his hand in a prohibitive manner. Many Lianorosians looked after him and soon the people started to return back to their own chores.  
"Right after Regemo left, everyone else left," Jedova noted, puzzled.  
"The groupthink of the tribe," Ni'Dea said, shrugging. "Come, let's see whether Arak has smashed the kitchen or not."  
"Are you sure it's... appropriate?" Jedova asked delicately.  
"Trust me, it is! We're talking about the family of my sister's now," Ni'Dea noted, giving a laugh, and patted the Jedi Master to his shoulder. "You're shying for nothing!"

Jedova did not really like that choice of words, but he let it be and followed the Tribe Seer. It would only be a new experience to him, he told himself. He could return to the Jedi Temple one experience richer. Or actually quite many experiences richer, Jedova remembered. There had happened quite a lot on the way, after all.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	13. Chapter 13

Jedova had to admit that the conversation of Deinden family was quite lively; even when they spoke Basic with their rusty skills, the words came fast. Jedova tried to stay out of the conversation, but in hospitability the family took him to their conversation. Seer Ni'Dea stayed calm, and so did Regemo and Tureq, but Arak and Arya talked as much as they managed to.  
"That's what they always are. One would wonder if I'm from a different family," Tureq noted to Jedova and smiled.  
"Arya is a good listener, too," Jedova noted, remembering how the girl had silently listened to his stories even though one didn't need to sense that the girl was bursting with excitement. Tureq laughed.  
"If the topic is interesting, she listens. But if it is boring, she may soon do something completely else than listening," he said.

As Arya's and Arak's playful bickering paused, Regemo cleared his throat and stoop up, serious. His children, all ignorant about what the adults had been talking, looked at their father, worried.  
"Dad, is something wrong?" Tureq asked.  
"Don't tell me I burned that karoo after all!" Arak said jokingly. He wanted to destroy the solemn air which had suddenly appeared around the table. Regemo took a deep breath and announced, "I have discussed with Seer Ni'Dea and Jedova Wang and I have decided that I give Arya my permission to leave for Jedi training, if she wishes to go."  
"What?" Arya exclaimed and looked at Jedova. "Really?"  
"Really," Jedova answered. He forced himself to look at the girl's brothers, who were looking at each other; Tureq had petrified and his eyes had widened. Arak's hands flopped to the table with a loud sound at the same time as his chin fell.

The boys turned to look at their little sister, stunned. Arya, astounded, looked at the Seer and the Jedi Master, then at her father and older brothers. Then Arak turned to look at Regemo.  
"Dad, how are we going to explain this to Gamu?" he asked. "He's sick."  
"Gamu will heal. We will tell him then," Regemo answered and looked at his only daughter. "Arya?"  
"If I really can go then... of course!" Arya exclaimed, being both astonished and happier than ever before.  
"Arya, I cannot guarantee that you will get to Jedi training or that you will accomplish it, but you get a chance," Jedova told, staying serious. Arya nodded without letting the information ruin her mood. Arak looked at the table.  
"So little sister is going to the big outside world," he mumbled to himself. He did not want to let Arya go, but at the same time he knew that if the girl truly wanted to become a Jedi, it was not his place to prevent it.  
"I'll be okay, big brother!" Arya said and patted the arm of her oldest brother, smiling widely. She could not believe her chance to be true.  
"We will leave in the morning," Jedova told.  
"Right. Tureq, Arak, I want you to escort Jedova and Arya to the city," Seer Ni'Dea told. She did not want to let her niece go to the outside world with such poor knowledge, but this was the best and probably the only chance on which she could get the girl where she belonged to.  
"Of course we'll escort them, right, big brother?" Tureq said and looked at his brother, who nodded.  
"I will inform the tribe after you have left," Ni'Dea told. Jedova nodded. This depart would be difficult for them all.

Jedova looked at Arya.  
"You probably want to say goodbye to your friends. If you get to the training, you won't come here for many years. Not before you have become someone's Padawan and the time has come for the Seer to teach you what your Master cannot," he said. Arya nodded.  
"I see," she said. "In the morning, okay?"

Jedova nodded. It was useless to force the girl to make the difficult goodbyes now already.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	14. Chapter 14

_In the next morning_

"You're leaving? Arizana, why?" exclaimed Daaron, one of Arya's friends.  
"So that I can become a Jedi!" Arya answered. "I'll be away for very long. It's not so easy."  
"Noo, Arizana, don't leave! We'll miss you!" Miriel exclaimed and clung to Arya. "Don't leave, don't leave! I won't let you leave!"

Arya tried to tear her friend's strong grip away. Tears started to form to her eyes.  
"If I want to become a Jedi, I have to go, Miriel. And I really wanna become a Jedi," she said. "Let me go. Please."  
"No, no, no!" Miriel shouted. Seer Ni'Dea, who had come to say her goodbyes to Jedova, walked closer to the children and said, "Miriel, there are things which can't be stopped. Do you want to stop Arya from doing something she truly wants to do?"  
"No, but Arizana belongs here, with us! She can't go!" Miriel said. "She can't, she can't, she can't!"  
"Miriel! Let me go!" Arya exclaimed, tears in her eyes. "This is my choice!"

Miriel looked at her friend, shaking her head. Seer sighed, kneeled next to the girls and carefully released Miriel's grip.  
"I hate you!" Miriel shouted at Arya and ran away, crying. Arya closed her eyes, trying to keep her tears from going farther than the corners of her eyes.  
"It'll be okay," Seer said calmly and looked at the children. Goodbyes had been said. "Let's go now, Arya."

Arya nodded, sniffing, and walked alongside the Seer to the threesome which would leave with her to this trip.  
"Were there problems?" Arak asked.  
"Poor Miriel took it very badly," Seer Ni'Dea told. Arak nodded and Jedova could not help wondering if taking Arya away was the right thing to do. But he knew that he had to trust the girl's will to go and become a Jedi.  
"Is everything ready now?" Tureq asked with a low voice.  
"The supplies and campfire materials are aboard," Arak notified. "We don't need anything else, right?"  
"Not at least on my behalf," Jedova answered.  
"Good, then we can go," Tureq noted, mounted his Breko and looked at Seer. Arak helped Arya on his own Breko and mounted too. Jedova mounted the Breko which had been saddled for him. The Breko squirted, irritated by the saddle.  
"Acheko, Ply, iski koere plaaren Jedi pliken ichipa. Kee lira nioko echen breko." _Sorry, Ply, but you have to put up with that Jedi Master on your back. I think he hasn't ridden a Breko before,_ Arak said and tapped the Breko's beak which had a quite sharp line of teeth.

"May the Ancients guard you on your journey, and you, Arya Deinden and Jedova Wang, also always in the future," Seer wished.  
"Thank you, Seer," Tureq said.  
"Chaarei heiero, tokemen ichi plekon." _May the Ancients guard you, Seer and all of the tribe,_ Arya wished in Veledosian.  
"Thank you for everything you did for me. I'm forever grateful," Jedova said, bowing as much as he could on the Breko.  
"Think nothing of it," Seer said serenely. "Now go. Have a safe journey."  
"Let's go then! Plokeena!" Tureq shouted. The Brekos left with their riders.

"Chaariko, mirikana mekei." _Ancients, please tell me that I did the right thing,_ Seer Ni'Dea whispered to the wind as the riders disappeared from her view. She turned to leave to the village center to inform the tribe about Arya's departure for Jedi training.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	15. Chapter 15

_In the next day, Coruscant, Core Worlds_

Degu sat, meditating silently in the chamber in which the healing crystals of fire were kept. He was close enough to them so that they could warm him.

This was one of the last of the Jedi Temple's meditation chambers he had not been in during the last couple of days, as he had tried to find his Master through the Force. He had done so much to catch even a glimpse of his Master, yet still had not sensed anything else than that the man was alive. It was as if the Master's signature was hiding somewhere, keen on staying out of sight of everyone.

Suddenly a bright light came to his closed eyes and he saw a vision:  
 _A verdant valley. A river. A couple of waterfalls. Light blue sky._

 _Jedova was riding on a quadruped animal which had a beak. There were two men, other one younger than the other, and a little girl with him. They were riding with similar mounts without saddles and reins._

Degu knew that the girl was with them because Jedova thought that she could get to Jedi training. And Degu recognized the scenery.

Master Jedova is on Kiros and on his way to its capital!

Degu gasped and stumbled up. Then he stopped to calm down, remembering the teachings of his Master. He would make it to Master Yoda even if he walked. Thus, he walked in a calm pace to the quarters of the Grand Master.

When he got to the door of Master Yoda's quarters, he knocked. The door opened and Degu saw that Master Yoda was with a Twi'lek woman who had purple skin.  
"I'm sorry for disturbing, Masters," Degu apologized, bowing to the Masters, and looked at Master Yoda. "I know now, where my Master is."  
"Come in and the door you must close," Master Yoda urged. Degu did so and waited for permission to talk.  
"So located Jedova you have, hmm?" Master Yoda asked, smiling serenely.  
"I saw a vision when I was meditating. Master Jedova is on Kiros," Degu told, keeping his voice under control.  
"How do you know that right on Kiros?" asked the Twi'lek.  
"I've been there before. I recognized the scenery," Degu answered. "I sense that Master is on his way to artisan colony. But I saw that he is not alone."  
"Not alone? With him who come?" Master Yoda asked.  
"I saw two young men. The other one is younger than other. There was also a little girl with them. I... sense that the girl is with them because my Master believes she can get to Jedi training," Degu told as accurately as he could. He just knew that the girl was there for that reason, even though he could not explain how he _knew_. "They were riding some sort of quadruped mounts. I didn't recognize them."  
"A little girl? How old?" the Twi'lek asked, now very interested.  
"Not very old. Probably not older than five. My vision wasn't that clear," Degu answered uncertainly. He did not like to give uncertain information when the Grand Master was present, and not otherwise either.  
"A Jedi Recruiter, Master Iami is. To Kiros with you to meet Jedova, she shall go, so that test the girl she can," Master Yoda decided.  
"As you wish, Master Yoda," both Degu and Master Iami told at the same time.  
"Now go, so that catch them you will," Master Yoda said. Two Jedi, a Padawan and a Master, bowed and exited.  
"I am already ready to leave," Degu told.  
"Then let's go," Master Iami said and she left for the hangar. Degu followed her.

 _Kiros, Expansion Region_

"So according to the myths, these seven Ancients created your kind?" Jedova asked.  
"So the legend says," Tureq noted. Arak translated one of the oldest Veledosian lores into Basic, _"Once there were seven Ancients.  
The Ancient of Fire, Neos the Phoenix, was considered the highest.  
The Ancient of Water, Lianoros the Searpent, always kept her cool.  
The Ancient of Earth, Amaros the Fieldlo, was the most stubborn of them all.  
The Ancient of Ice, Rikios the Chirein, had her emotions frozen on the North Glacier.  
The Ancient of Flora and Fauna, Haleos the Starsimian, stayed true to the Living Force.  
The Ancient of Wind, Phandeos the Skyrogue, followed wind and the Unifying Force.  
The Ancient of Electricity, Umukuos the Plasmorph, was impulsive for them all.  
Tribes took their names._"  
"Everyone at our home remember it by heart in Veledosian," Arya noted. "I know it too!"

Arya started to calmly tell the lore out in Veledosian. Jedova could not help smiling to the girl's enthusiasm. He knew that if Arya managed to learn self-discipline, she could become a great Padawan one day, when its time would come.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	16. Chapter 16

_In the evening_

Degu and Master Iami arrived on Kiros on one of the available ships of the Jedi Order.  
"Do you sense your Master being here already?" Master Iami asked Degu when they got off their ship.  
"He's a small distance away from the city," Degu answered and looked at the Jedi Recruiter, trying to restrain his will to run to his Master. "Shall we go to meet up with them?"  
"Show me the way," Master Iami told. Degu nodded and started to proceed out of the city. He had learned to know these streets back during the last time he had been on Kiros.

Back then he had been there with Master Jedova, Degu reminisced. And it had been their first mission together. They had had to go to mediate a conflict of a bigger scale to which the other party had asked help from the Jedi. Jedova had brought him outside the city at fitting moments for a walk. The verdant valleys, which were full of life, were among of the best places to practice noticing the Living Force and connecting with it.

"Degu!" the call of a familiar voice awakened Degu from the warm memories. The Padawan turned to look to the direction of the voice and saw a familiar Togruta boy. It was Veylkar, his friend and the son of a man who belonged to that party which had asked for Jedi assistance. Degu left to him and Master Iami stayed behind to wait.  
"Veylkar! How have you been?" Degu asked.  
"Fine, thanks for asking. What about you? You aren't with your Master," Veylkar said and took a look at Master Iami shortly.  
"I've been quite fine. Yes, my Master and I, well, got separated from each other. I'm going to meet him with Master Iami," Degu told.  
"What happened?" Veylkar asked.  
"It's a long story and I'm afraid I don't have time to explain it now," Degu said, lamenting. "If I end up to this neighborhood at a better time, I'll tell you then."  
"Sure! It was nice to see you first time in a long time. See you again and may the Force be with you!" Veylkar said with a bright smile on his lips.  
"May the Force be with you too, my dear friend. See you!" Degu said. After those words the two youngsters continued on their own paths.  
"Is he a friend of yours?" Master Iami asked. Degu nodded.  
"We are almost outside of the city," he told.

Jedova looked into the horizon, seeing the silhouette of the city.  
"We're getting close," he noted.  
"Do you want to go in this evening already or will we camp here and continue tomorrow?" Tureq asked.  
"We'll go in this evening if we have time," Jedova said. "I am being missed at the Jedi Temple."  
"How do you know?" Arak asked.  
"My Padawan is there, if the situation on Ec Pand has calmed down and he has gotten to leave," Jedova answered. "He is worried about me. After all, I would be worried about him if he disappeared like this."  
"Well then, it's our pleasure to help you and your apprentice to get back together, even though our help is very little," Tureq said, smiling. He, like his siblings, felt in those words the strong bond between Jedova and his Padawan.  
"The simplest gesture of kindness can fill a galaxy with hope," Jedova spoke. "It's one of the Jedi sayings."  
"That sounded great," Arak said and Arya nodded.

Degu looked to the distance. He could discern the silhouettes of the riders among the gradually darkening terrain and, clearer than that, sense their Force signatures. Master Jedova's signature had gone from hiding the moment he had seen the vision; maybe that had been the point when he had just pinpointed its location. The Master had not been hiding, just ready to be found from the vastness of the galaxy. Degu could not restrain himself from calling his Master through the Force.

Jedova suddenly took a deep breath when he was reached through the Force by Degu's shout, _Master!_  
"What is it?" Tureq asked.  
"Degu. He is here," Jedova answered in surprise. He had not reached out that far into the Force to notice the boy's arrival on the planet. His senses had gone dormant in the village and he had not needed them actively ever since.  
"Who?" Arak asked.  
"My Padawan. He... he must have sensed that I am here. He has come to meet me. And I sense... another Jedi Master near him," Jedova answered.  
"Another Jedi Master?" Arya repeated.  
"If a Padawan's Master disappears, they are given to the responsibility of another Jedi Master until their Master is found," Jedova explained.  
"Makes sense," Arak noted. Jedova saw two figures, Degu and the Jedi Master with him, starting to approach them. He answered to the call of his Padawan, _Degu._

Degu and Master Iami reached the group. Jedova dismounted Breko and Degu was in a short moment by his side, asking, "Master, are you all right?"  
"I am, Degu. There's no need to worry," Jedova answered calmly. He was happy to see his apprentice. It felt like it had been months since the last time he had seen him.  
"I was seriously so terribly worried about you!" Degu said.  
"I know. Now calm down," Jedova said composedly. He saw the dark circles around the Padawan's eyes. The real time passed was not huge in its amount, but for the Padawan it certainly had been. Jedova did not know everything that had happened, but something awful must have had happened for him to pass out all of a sudden in that fight to protect the governor.

The Veledosian threesome dismounted and Arak took the Breko Jedova had ridden.  
"Terennee, kor mikiana jacha imichata." _I know, the saddle is uncomfortable, but you can take it,_ he said to the mount. Arya stood a little bit farther away from the Brekos and looked at the two Jedi, who had come to meet them.  
"Iami," Jedova greeted the Twi'lek with a nod.  
"Jedova," Master Iami answered to the gesture and looked at Arya. Jedova looked at Degu.  
"Is it a coincidence that exactly Iami is with you, or did you perhaps sense something before you came here?" he asked his Padawan.  
"Actually I did sense something. I sensed that you had found someone who could become a Jedi, if they just got to the training," Degu answered.  
"You sensed right," Jedova said and looked at Arya. The Breko which Arya and Arak had ridden squirted and broke out from Arak's grip. It stopped, staying between Arya and the Jedi.  
"Aachee! Token, toroka tokoo!" _Drat! Token, don't!_ Tureq exclaimed and dragged the Breko further away. "Oshikono, eikemene lira tuke Arya." _Calm down, they won't harm Arya._  
"So who are these companions of yours?" Iami asked.  
"They are from the village near of which I made an emergency landing after I had managed to escape from Hopeakuu's clutch. Arak, Tureq and Arya," Jedova presented the Veledosians, who all nodded at their name.  
"And Arya is the one you think can become a Jedi?" Iami asked. Jedova nodded.  
"Can any of them speak Basic?" Degu asked.  
"Yes," came the answer from the mouths of all three.  
"We've been taught," Arak noted.  
"Though none of us had used it, though," Tureq continued.  
"Until Master Wang came," Arya ended.  
"Are they related to each other?" Iami asked.  
"Siblings," Jedova answered. A slightly worried expression came to Iami's face; Jedi were forbidden to have attachments. That was why the children were taken to training before they turned one.

Token squirted again and tried to break loose from Tureq's hold when Iami came a couple of steps closer to Arya.  
"Token, toroka tokoo! Toroka tokoo!" _Token, don't! Don't!_ Tureq said. "Arak, eikara mel!" _Arak, help me!_

Arak joined in wrenching Token backwards.  
"Sorry! Token is overprotective of children!" Tureq shouted over Token's squirting and Arak's huffing.

Iami nodded and kneeled in front on Arya so that their eyes would be nearer to the same level. Arya looked at the Twi'lek, trying to keep her face expressionless. Iami looked at the girl for a moment, trying to sense the girl's future as a Jedi and the past as a child. She saw the death of Arya's mother, heard a Seer talking with Arya about the girl's ability to control fire and saw how Arya saved Jedova Wang with her fire controlling abilities. She sensed a very strong connection to the Force in the girl.

Token started to scream and Arak started to yell curses in Veledosian. Arya jumped and turned to look at her oldest brother, astounded. Iami had already seen enough.  
"That doesn't sound good," Degu noted quietly to his Master.  
"Agreed," Jedova admitted and stole a look on Iami, who was still looking at Arya. Arak shouted a new group of curses.  
"Limikarako lira teneirataka iti pletera!" _Don't teach your curses to little sister!_ Tureq yelled.  
"Phiira mirana no!" _She knows them already!_ Arak answered.  
"Kaareko?" _How do you know?_ Tureq asked.  
"Imihi paarei plo toro achee." _I taught them to her,_ Arak told.  
"AANNEE?!" _WHAT?!_ Tureq screamed. "Arak Deinden eche ni Lianoros, tirika plo aaren pletera?!" _Arak Deinden of Lianoros tribe, what have you taught to little sister?!_  
"You know, I'd like to know what they're talking about," Jedova said and looked at Arya. The blushing girl glanced at her brothers who were roaring in a full-scale fight. It had been a secret that Arak had taught curses to his little sister, who had promised to stay silent about it. Now, however, Arak had revealed it himself.  
"Must not tell," Arya said quietly, shaking her head.  
"Are you hiding something?" Jedova asked. Arya turned to look away from the Jedi Master.  
"EEMERA KIIRA PLUKONO!" _IT IS A NECESSARY SKILL!_ Arak yelled.  
"LIRA KIORO!" _IT IS NOT!_ Tureq roared back and released his hold of Token, leaving the crazed Breko to the hold of Arak only and looked at the Jedi and his little sister, taking a deep breath before returning back to the Jedi. It was not like him to become agitated like that.  
"Taitama voicha plikon iikiron." _It seems that someone will replace mom after all,_ Arak muttered, wistful. Tureq heard it but did not react to it at all. Arak had not meant it to be heard by anyone, he knew it. He did know his elder brother. After all, he had known him for fifteen years already.

After all, he had known Arak for his whole life.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	17. Chapter 17

"What was that all about?" Degu asked.  
"Nothing that has any influence on your lives," Tureq answered and avoided looking at Arya. Instead of that, he looked at Iami askingly. He did not need to speak out his question.  
"Arya clearly has a strong connection to the Force. It is good to ascertain her midi-chlorian count with a blood test, though," Iami told.

Tureq nodded. He did not have even the slightest of idea about what midi-chlorians were, but he knew even without looking or sensing that Arya did not get startled by the idea of a blood test. The girl did get scratches and small wounds daily as she wrestled with the boys, so naturally she had gotten used to such things. Arak stayed in the sideline and listened to the conversation carefully.  
"Hey! Tureq, take care of Ply and Chacha, and I'll take Token for a small riding trip to calm it down!" he shouted.  
"The best idea of yours I've heard of for a while!" Tureq answered and went closer to the Brekos in order to keep them still. He also knew that it started to be the time to let Arya to act without big brothers taking care of her.

Iami looked at Arya who looked back at her, trying to stay calm. The distractions understood to leave and take the rest of the disturbances with themselves.  
"This will take just a moment. It won't hurt much at all," Iami said soothingly to Arya while taking the blood test device, which she had used ever since becoming a Jedi recruiter, from her utility pouch.  
"Believe it or not, but if you knew how many wounds Arya has gotten to herself ever since she learned to walk, you wouldn't feel the need to say that," Tureq called out. Arya smirked while surprise flashed on Iami's face before she concentrated on her device.

Arya winced as she felt the sting, but she did not make a sound. The feeling of stinging was familiar. Iami looked at the count on the device and frowned. She had never seen a count so high during her career.  
"What is it?" Jedova asked and came closer to see the count, being amazed by what he saw. "I do recall hearing some rumors about Master Yoda's midi-chlorian count but when I see something like that as something concrete-"  
"TOKEEEEEEENNN!" Arak's cry interrupted the Jedi Master. "LOOK OUT, IT GOT COMPLETELY MAAAAAD!"  
"Plaske plukeion Liarn!" _The strong wall of Water!_ Tureq summoned his half-practiced skills and created a wall of water impervious to Brekos in front of Token.

But Tureq was very young and inexperienced, and there was not very much water to be used for the wall. Token penetrated it with ease and charged at Jedi. Degu pulled Arya aside and Token turned its sight to him.  
"Stay away from Arya so that it won't hurt you!" Tureq shouted, powerless as Token ran past him, Ply and Chacha, with Arak trying to stay on the crazed Breko's back. The eldest Lianorosian howled words unknown to them, but they still felt his panic seeping from his voice.

Jedova reached out to the Force around him and together with Iami he lifted the Breko up in the air with it. Arak flew off his ride due to the sudden stop and aimed to land on his feet. The massive momentum, nevertheless, made him lose his balance right after he had landed on the ground. He fell flat right to Jedova's feet. Token screamed, enraged.  
"Big brother! Are you ok?" Arya shouted.  
"No broken bones!" Arak cried out. "I hope at least."  
"Well then, the next time we have to do something like this, Token is not taken with us," Tureq sighed. "It has to be told to Purono immediately when we return to the village."

Token calmed down eventually and soon after that Jedova and Iami put it down. Arak was ready to take the ride further away from the group, cursing under his breath so that no one could make out his words.  
"So? Will Arya get to leave with you?" he asked when Token was far enough from the Jedi. Now part of him was asking _"please"_.  
"Yes. Arya has such a high midi-chlorian count that it would be a waste to not train her to use the Force," Iami told.  
"Veledosian have been... well, as long as our history is willing to tell us, strong in the Force. But it is a simple fact that our Seer cannot teach her anywhere as much and as well as you Jedi can," Tureq said with a frog in his throat. These would be part of the last words he would say when his little sister was present.  
"I understand," Iami noted neutrally. The young man's words were not completely clear to her, but she understood enough.

Jedova looked at Arya. There was something that looked like tears, shining in the girl's eyes. It was just logical to think that the girl had the closest bond with her elder brothers who had taken care of her when their parents had not been able to. During these last three days, he had seen how strong the bond between those three was. It was tragedy to shatter such a bond, but it was necessary. It had to be done.  
"So, it's time for goodbyes, little sister," Tureq lamented. This had been prolonged enough already.  
"You will hear about me!" Arya said bravely as she fought the tears which strived to get out of her eyes. "But then I'll be a Jedi Knight!"

Arak burst out crying and turned his back to others.  
"I can't take this!" he shouted.  
"Arak, pull yourself together," Tureq said coldly. He tried to deny from himself that his chin was waggling but he knew for real how close to crying he was. Arak kept on crying.  
"Ahchikca takuron plee liarn, Arak!" _Stop acting as a waterfall now, Arak!_ Arya roared. Tureq was startled by Arya's coarse language, and Arak quieted and turned to look at his little sister.  
"Aichimiko plakein nar toucaree sair takikon! Chei lira ortamiiro nar imichi! Meer naik saton?!" _We will hear about each other yet! This is not for good! Did you hear me?!_ Arya ranted as the tears tried to come out in the middle of the sentence, but she forced them to stay in the background.  
"Chichi-plikon..." _Little sister..._ Arak whispered.  
"Pirou naater tukeron." _We will see again,_ Tureq said without believing into his words. Arya would leave far away now. How could they possibly see each other ever again?

Arak kneeled in front of Arya and ruffled his little sister's hair, having a bittersweet smile on his face.  
"Pirou cheer ikima tikan imi pyron aken toisno." _We will see again when you are big and strong,_ he confirmed even though he did not believe his words any more than his little brother did. Neither of them could see any hope of ever meeting their sister again.  
"Teer naichi imar li Gamu ikia oolrei chion." _Please tell my best regards to Gamu after he has recovered,_ Arya asked.  
"Farchen, chichia." _Of course, little one,_ Tureq said.  
"Imikia lira chichia." _I'm not a little one,_ Arya notified. Her brothers smiled shortly for this remark.  
"Pyroon tokensen." _We do know that,_ Tureq noted, smiling. Arak's tears had already been partly shed but now his own tears were starting to flood over. He did not want his little sister to see him crying. This had to be ended quickly.

The siblings shared a small group hug.  
"Chaarei heiero, pleterea." _May the Ancients guard you, little sister,_ Tureq and Arak wished.  
"Chaarei heiero, petair. Taarichama Gamu aken paaren." _May the Ancients guard you, brothers. Take care of Gamu and dad,_ Arya wished.  
"Michi taachu seer." _You can count on that,_ Arak assured.  
"You know, I'd like to know what they are saying," Jedova noted to Degu.  
"You know, sometimes excess curiosity may be fatal," Degu countered. "Wait, where have I heard that before? Oh yeah, right, that was one of the first things you thought to have sunken into my head!"

Jedova glanced bitingly at his Padawan. He did understand that the Padawan only tried to relieve his great zest for finding his Master, but this was not an appropriate moment for their mutual teasing.

The brothers stood up and took a few steps backwards. For the last time they looked at their beloved little sister. Everyone tried to hold back their tears. Tureq and Arak looked at the Jedi.  
"From this moment on our little sister in in the hands of your Order," Tureq announced. "We have protected her as long as we have been able to. Now... it is time to go on different paths. Paths that have been meant for us. May the Ancients guard you all, wherever you go."

Jedova nodded.  
"May the Force be with you and your tribe always," he wished. The brothers looked at the Jedi and their little sister for once more and then mounted the Brekos and left. Token protested, but Ply and Chacha dragged it with them.  
"Chaarei heiero, Jedi!" _May the Ancients guard you, Jedi!_ the Deinden brothers shouted for once and then accelerated away to the darkening valley on the backs of the Brekos.  
"Let's go too," Iami said and turned to go. Arya and Degu both walked near Jedova. Arya did not know either Degu or Iami almost at all, and because of that she was shy of them, and Degu on the other hand wanted to make sure that this time his Master would return to Coruscant with him.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	18. Chapter 18

_A few hours later, Coruscant, Core Worlds_

"Wow! So much life!" Arya exclaimed, excited, as they stood out of the ship in the hangar of the Jedi Temple. The girl looked around herself, trying to see everything. The Jedi could not help smiling at the pure amazement of such a small child.  
"You will see enough of this during your time. I'm sure you'll learn every corner of this Temple by heart quickly," Jedova said. He knew by now that no warnings could flatten the excitement of the girl.  
"So, returned you have. Hmm, and a new child with you, you have brought," came a familiar voice. The foursome which had just arrived turned to look at the talker; it was Master Yoda.  
"Master Yoda," Jedova greeted with a bow.  
"Good to see you here again, it is, Jedova Wang. Throw you around, the life truly does," Master Yoda noted.  
"Yes," Jedova admitted. Actually, ever during his Jedi career he had not had a really lucky day. Instead of that, he was quite an unlucky Jedi, like his friends used to call him. His mission was always lucky when neither he nor his current Padawan did not get into trouble or hurt.

Yoda walked to Arya and looked at her. He was just a little shorter than the girl who looked curiously at the Grand Master.  
"So a Veledosian you are. And Arya Deinden your name is, right?" he asked. Arya jumped a bit about the Grand Master knowing that, but she nodded, unsure. She could sense through the Force that this Jedi Master had experience from a very long time.

Master Yoda turned to look at Jedova and Degu.  
"To rest, you can go. A long journey you have made," he told them.  
"Thank you, Master Yoda," Jedova and Degu said a little bit out of sync.  
"Will we see each other again someday?" Arya asked hopefully.  
"There are almost 10 000 Jedi in the Order. Therefore, it is completely possible that we will see each other again," Jedova said, smiling widely. Degu smiled shortly and shook his head for the choice of words of his Master.  
"Good luck for your training, Arya," he said to Arya.  
"Thanks," Arya said a bit timidly. Even though she had gotten very well along with Degu, she was still a little shy of him.

Now everything was completely alien to her, unrecognizable. She was very far away from home, and she knew it, but this place would become her home from this moment on. Hence, she was not far away from home. She was home again. This was a different home, but it was her home.

Jedova and Degu left. Yet before they exited the hangar, Arya heard Degu say, "All right, now I want to know just everything, Master! What did I miss?"  
"Okay, Arya. Come and let's sort the rest of the things out," Master Iami said.  
"Thought about to which clan we put to girl, you have?" Master Yoda asked.  
"Boma clan seems to be a good option. There isn't overcrowding," Master Iami noted. Master Yoda nodded in agreement.  
"Wait for you in the room of a Thousand Fountains with them, I will," Master Yoda told and turned to leave.

Master Iami and Arya left with a turbolift to a lower floor. Arya's typical Veledosian clothing was not suitable for Jedi training. On the way, Master Iami explained many basic things a Jedi Initiate had to know and made sure that the girl remembered them all.

About a quarter of a standard hour passed by. It was not difficult to find a fitting tunic for Arya. The Veledosian could not help but notice that this clothing was notably more comfortable and of higher quality than the home-made clothes she had been glad to wear all her life. After all, she had not known of anything better. It had been part of her life.

Master Iami put the Veledosian clothes away. The scent of soil, grass and air of Kiros was replaced with scentless clothes of material unknown to Arya. The last part of her life had been torn away now, and the little girl could not help feeling a heartbreak. But she was home now, she told herself. This was her new home, and it came with a price.

This price she had to pay now and forever, even after forgetting about this day decades later. This was her life now, and this price she would pay for it. She had made this choice, and the consequences were hers to see.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	19. Chapter 19

Arya memorized the routes as she went through them. Master Iami had told her that it was expected from Initiates of her age to know the layout of the Temple by heart. Arya was going to learn it as fast and well as she could. She was determined to know her way around her new home, just like she had known her way around Lianoros village back home... back in her old home, she corrected herself again. She had no idea about how vast the Jedi Temple was, but she was to learn it soon enough.

The valleys of Kiros were verdant, but the Room of a Thousand Fountains was completely something else.  
"Come," Master Iami urged. Arya followed hastily the Jedi Recruiter and at the same time she tried to see as much as possible. The room was humongous! And also, there were so many Jedi meditating, brooding or walking.

Master Yoda was sitting on a bench. A group of twelve children of Arya's age had gathered around him.  
"Ah, very soon you arrived. A longer patience exercise I expected to keep before arrive, you would," Master Yoda said. The children looked curiously at Arya and Master Iami. Arya looked at the children, being as curious of them as they were of her. _Is this that Boma clan Master Iami had talked about?_  
"Boma clan, here your newcomer is. Arya Deinden her name is. With you from this moment on, train she will", Master Yoda told. The children said their greetings to Arya.  
"Hi everyone," Arya said nervously. She did not know any of them, so getting into the center of attention was a little bit scary for her. None of these children looked like Lianorosians, and the foreign feeling of not belonging there frightened her. She knew she had to best her fear; she belonged here now!  
"Go on. It'll go well", Master Iami said calmingly to Arya. Arya nodded, mumbled a small thank and walked carefully to amongst the Boma clan and turned to look at Master Yoda, who spoke again, "Now continue the exercise, we shall. Important patience is. Cherish it, you should."

No one said anything. Everyone just stood still. Arya looked around herself, moving only her eyes. Soon standing still started to make her impatient. Would the day be spent to this?

She wanted to prove herself by doing well in her exercise, so she forced herself to stay completely still. It chafed her inside, but she wanted to prove that she could do just as well as those who had been in training from the beginning. Soon she noticed that she was twiddling the edge of her tunic with the fingers of her right hand and she could not make herself stop it. She noticed the glance of Master Yoda and forced herself grip off her tunic. A frustrated huff could not stay from coming out of her nose. She fared the worst of them all, she thought.

Arya closed her eyes and tried to calm down. The frustration accumulated all the time. But now, as she kept her eyes closed, she could feel a weak connection to the Living Force. Unclear as it was, she felt the impatience of some others.

She was not alone with impatience.

That feeling was relieving and Arya took a deep breath, intending to do it as silently as possible. She felt her fingers grab the edge of her tunic once again but this time she forced her grip to stay tightly. Soon her hand became numb and she let go. This repeated itself in a slow pace and Arya could not help being amazed by a brown-haired Wookiee – even though she could not recognize the being as a Wookiee – a bit taller than her, who had stayed completely still and patient for all this time.

Two hours passed by. Then Master Yoda looked like he had suddenly woken up from sleep and remembered that the Initiates were still there.  
"Go now, you may. Over the exercise is," he said, got up from the bench and started to walk away. The Initiates bowed respectfully to the Grand Master, and Arya could hear some of her joints crack as she moved after staying immobile for a long time.  
"Hey, for a first-timer you fared well!" a brown-haired boy said to Arya.  
"Eh... Thanks. But I really didn't fare that well," Arya said, confused. The teaching she had gotten back with Lianoros tribe had been private teaching and the only one, who had taught her at all, was Seer Ni'Dea, who never complimented anyone much at all, and only when one performed notably well and beyond her expectations. Now the compliments only confused her. She had not fared very well at all, she knew she had not.

The Wookiee, whose patience Arya had marveled earlier, said something.  
"Gomorrah said that usually the newcomers don't fare at the patience exercises kept by Yoda," the same boy told. "You did, and everyone could see it. I'm Qui-Gon Jinn, by the way."  
"N-nice to meet you," Arya said shyly. She felt the gazes of everyone on her back and looked surreptitiously the rest of the group. Many noticed her gaze and the rest of them introduced themselves.

As the conversation went on and Arya learned to know her clan mates a little better, she stopped being shy of them. The way how open-mindedly her peers took her to their conversation brought to her mind how her own family had taken Jedova Wang to their conversation at the last night at the village of Lianoros tribe. That night felt so far away already.

Thinking about her family hurt and Arya pushed it to the background. Master Iami had especially sharply made sure that Arya had truly understood that Jedi were forbidden to have attachments. That was why she pushed away the thoughts of family and home on Kiros. Now the Jedi Temple was her home and the Boma clan and the whole Jedi Order was her family.

She knew that she had to do a lot of work to catch her clan mates. But she did not doubt her ability to do that. Otherwise she would not have fared at the exercise as well as she had.

She could do this. She knew it for sure.

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


	20. Epilogue

_Two days later, Kiros, Expansion Region_

Tureq and Arak arrived to the tribe's village. Many tribesmen were there waiting for them.  
"Arya is now officially in Jedi training. Let's be proud of her!" Tureq announced from the back of Token. Many started to talk in astonishment. _"Had one of the children of their tribe left with the outsider?"_

Seer Ni'Dea was aloof from the crowd with Regemo.  
"When shall we tell them?" Seer asked.  
"Let them get through this first," Regemo said.

Seer marched to the brothers and took the Brekos to their stable with them. After they had left the Brekos to rest, Seer took Tureq and Arak apart from the rest of the tribe.  
"Do you want the details privately from us, Seer?" Arak asked, pretending cheerful, and created a false smile on his face. In truth, his heart was hurt endlessly by the fact that his little sister had left.  
"It's not about that," Seer answered solemnly, looking at the ground. No matter what Regemo said, this had to be told right away. Their hurt would only be prolonged if this news were withheld from these two.  
"What then?" Tureq asked, worried.

Seer Ni'Dea lifted her gaze and looked at the brothers for a short time. Then she told it, "Gamu is dead."

 **/Author's note: Star Wars (c) Lucasfilm, any characters you cannot find on Wookieepedia, Veledos, Veledosians and their language (c) Me/**


End file.
